The only passenger rail link between Britain and the rest ofEurope has been shut down indefinitely, Eurostar said Sunday, promising more travel misery for thousands of stranded passengers just before Christmas.

Services have been suspended since late Friday, when a series of glitches stranded five trains inside the Channel Tunnel and trapped more than 2,000 passengers for hours in stuffy and claustrophobic conditions. More than 55,000 passengers overall have been affected. (more…)

GENEVA (AFP) -

Solar Impulse, the Swiss bid to make the first solar-powered flight around the world, rolled out its prototype on Friday at an airbase near Zurich and powered up the engines.

All four sun-fuelled electric motors were switched on for the first time under open skies after the completed high-tech plane was pushed out of the hangar.

“With its engines running at full power, it gave the impression of wanting to get off the ground straightaway… but it won?t be long now before we release the brakes and let it roll its first few metres,” said Andre Borschberg, co-founder and chief executive of Solar Impulse. (more…)

TEHRAN, Iran – Iran will allow the U.N. nuclear agency to inspect a newly revealed and still unfinished uranium enrichment facility, the country’s nuclear chief told state television Saturday.

Vice President Ali Akbar Salehi didn’t specify when inspectors from theInternational Atomic Energy Agency could visit the site, but said it has to be worked out with the agency under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty rules.

Iran’s newly revealed enrichment site is said to be in the arid mountains near the holy city of Qom, inside a heavily guarded, underground facility belonging to the elite Revolutionary Guard. (more…)

An ad randomly appearing on the popular site Myspace.com features a picture of Natalee Holloway in advertising for a site to show young kids what they would look like as an adult.  Myspace is the same site that will kick off members for politically incorrect pictures or speech, but somehow they let truly offensive things like this onto their site without a problem.   Holloway is the young woman who was murdered in Aruba while on her high school senior trip.

There’s something in the air: an unmistakable scent of burning wood at night; in the mornings, a cold wind blows through my open bedroom window, shuddering me awake, serving far better than any alarm clock.

Here in Colorado, the aspens in the nearby mountains are just beginning to turn yellow, giving some slopes a five o’clock shadow; when it rains these days, there’s a chance that it might be snowing in the higher elevations above 10,000 feet.

We’ve reached that time of year again – whether we like it or not. (more…)

A one-liter car? This moniker describes a car that uses one liter of fuel—about a quarter of a gallon—to propel a car for 100 kilometers, or 62 miles. The one-liter car’s fuel economy translates to almost 240 mpg, and VW has had such a car in its sights for some time now. In 2002, outgoing VW CEO Ferdinand Piëch, now head of the company’s supervisory board, drove a cigar-shaped prototype from VW headquarters in Wolfsburg to a shareholders’ meeting in Hamburg.
Now the idea of the one-liter car has been resurrected. VW’s biggest news at the Frankfurt auto show was the L1 concept, a prototype that “is close to production” and “will be developed,” the company says. Three ingredients were needed to make it happen: a supremely efficient powertrain, great aerodynamics, and lightweight engineering.
As to the powertrain, VW has opted for a two-cylinder, 39-hp turbo-diesel engine combined with a 14-hp electric motor. There is a stop/start system and a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. The L1 can reach 100 mph, but fuel economy at that speed drops to a shameful 1.38 liters per 100 kilometers, or 170 mpg. (more…)

Arguably violating its embed agreement, the nearuniversal press practice since 9/11, and the expressed wishes of the family, the Associated Press went ahead and published a photograph of mortally wounded Marine Lance Corporal Joshua “Bernie” Bernard, killed in action in Afghanistan. The AP also ignored the pleas ofSecretary of Defense Robert Gates, who had implored the press agency as a “matter of judgment and common decency” not to publish the photo.

Bernard, 21, a devout Christian and Iraq War veteran from Maine, was described by his squad leader as “a true-heartedly very good guy … probably one of the best guys I’ve known in my entire life.” Bernard served as his unit’s point man and navigator. He lost his life Aug. 14 when he was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade that blew off one leg and badly mangled the other. The AP photo captured Bernard lying on the ground, two buddies attempting to help — a splash of red where one leg had been. (more…)

It’s high noon for the high holidays.

Fearing jihadists will attack synagogues during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, a group of badass rabbis has developed a program to turn your average shul-goer into a lean, mean fighting machine.

The group, which calls itself the International Security Coalition of Clergy, was founded by Rabbi Gary Moscowitz, who boasts a black belt in karate, teaches martial arts and was an NYPD cop for nine years.

He’s teaching others basic and advanced fighting moves — how to take down a terrorist by the neck, how to use a table as cover from gunfire and how to execute a nifty running somersault while drawing a gun — that he says can be used by Jews if they’re attacked by terrorists during prayer.

“Jews are not like Christians,” Moscowitz said. “If I turn my cheek, I’m coming around to make a kick.”   MORE>>>

A team of German scientists has invented the world’s first printable batteries. They’re wafer-thin and environmentally friendly and can be made in large quantities for a fraction of the cost of conventional batteries.

A group of German scientists want to trim down heavy, bulky batteries to wafers thinner than a millimeter and lighter than a gram. The research team, led by Reinhard Baumann of the Fraunhofer Research Institution for Electronic Nano Systems (ENAS), also wants the new batteries to be produced by a cost-effective printing process.

“Our goal is to be able to mass produce the batteries at a price in the single digit cent range each,” Andreas Willert, group manager at ENAS, said in a statement.

By placing several batteries in a row, voltages of 3 V, 4.5 V and 6 V can also be achieved. The battery contains no mercury and is in this respect environmentally friendly. Its voltage is 1.5 V. A standard AAA battery weighs about 11.5 grams and also runs at 1.5 volts.   MORE>>>

The words of former Nazi guard Ignat Danilchenko will haunt John Demjanjuk one last time.

Danilchenko’s decades-old statements to Soviet investigators provide what are considered the most detailed — and controversial — allegations of Demjanjuk’s work as a guard at the Sobibor death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland.

German prosecutors this month listed Danilchenko as a witness at Demjanjuk’s war-crimes trial in Munich, which could begin in October. The listing was an error, as Danilchenko died in 1985, but his statements are expected to play a key role in the case. (more…)

Never particularly patriotic due to their country’s jingoistic history, a poll released on Thursday showed fewer than half of all Germans know the lyrics to their national anthem.

According to the survey carried out by pollster Emnid for Daheim magazine, only 47 percent of all Germans can sing along to the Deutschlandlied written by Joseph Haydn in 1797.

Of the 1,003 people surveyed, there was considerable geographic disparity in familiarity with the lyrics penned by August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben in 1841 to accompany the music. Whereas 51 percent of western Germans knew them, only one-third of those from the country’s formerly communist eastern half did. (more…)

Bernie Ecclestone, the Formula One boss embroiled in controversy over a verbal gaffe in which he praised Adolf Hitler, has cancelled a planned appearance at the famous Nürburgring auto racetrack this week.

The 78-year-old was scheduled to be at the opening of amusement park on Thursday at the Nürburgring ahead of the F1 grand prix at the notoriously difficult track on Sunday. That visit has now been cancelled without an official reason, though calls for Ecclestone’s resignation have been ongoing since he told British newspaper The Times last Friday that Hitler was a leader who could “get things done.”

Ecclestone may still attend the racing event on Sunday though, despite pressure to cancel. (more…)

After a recent altercation between Americans and locals in the mountain resort, the US consulate in Munich said Americans could be targeted over the 4th of July weekend. On Sunday, the consulate said the alert would be lifted soon.

Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a popular recreation spot for US military personnel stationed in Germany. After a brawl at a Garmisch nightclub two weeks ago where several people were injured, an American serviceman who took part was threatened with revenge attacks. Further threats came later in the week and warned that Americans would be the target of new attacks.

The US consulate in Munich issued a warning July 2, telling Americans to “avoid public gather places, particularly restaurants, bars and discos frequented by American citizens,” in Garmisch. (more…)

Anarchists from Hamburg’s autonomous scene battled police for six hours late Saturday and early Sunday in the trendy Schanzenviertel neighbourhood after a street fair. At least 67 rioters were arrested and 27 police officers injured.

Over 10,000 visitors visited the Schanzenfest street fair, but once it turned dark, over 1,000 young, masked anarchists came out to do battle, police said. The rioters threw bottles, stones and fireworks at police.

“The fusillade was extremely massive,” police spokesman Ralf Meyer told the daily Hamburger Abendblatt, who said the anarchists were more aggressive than in past years. For years, the Schanzenfest has often concluded with clashes between police and the left-wing, anti-fascistAutonomen, or “Black Bloc.” (more…)

WASHINGTON – Police say former Washington Mayor Marion Barry has been arrested and charged with stalking a woman.

The United States Park Police said Barry, a current D.C. Council member, was arrested Saturday in Washington after a woman flagged down an officer and complained that Barry was stalking her.

Barry was charged with misdemeanor stalking and released.

A message left seeking comment from a spokeswoman for Barry wasn’t immediately returned early Sunday.

Barry served four terms as mayor. In his third, he was videotaped in 1990 in a hotel room smoking crack cocaine in an FBI sting. He served six months in prison and in 1994 regained the mayor’s office.  SOURCE>>>

MOSCOW (Reuters) – A Russian far-right party posted an open letter to British talent show singer Susan Boyle late on Tuesday, heaping praise on the 48-year-old Scot and wishing her well after she was admitted to a clinic for exhaustion.

“Susan! You have already gained popularity and many admirers and fans,” leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR), Vladimir Zhirinovsky, said in an open letter on the party’s website www.ldpr.ru.

Andrei Lugovoy, Britain’s main suspect in the London murder of Kremlin critic Alexander Litvinenko, holds a seat in parliament for the ultra-nationalist party which has called on countries belonging to the former Soviet Union to rejoin. (more…)

A right wing Italian deputy says that public transport seats in his constituency of Milan should be reserved for Italians only. 

“Reserve seats for people from Milan, like those reserved for handicapped people and women. Because soon, if immigration does not stop, they (local Italians) will become a minority to protect,” said Matteo Salvini, Milan town councillor and Vice-Secretary for the Northern League, on Thursday. 

Salvini, who is a candidate for the June European elections and his party The Northern League, is a junior coalition partner of Silvio Berlusconi’s government seeks to crack down on clandestine immigration. 

The Communist Party called Salvini’s proposal “racist,” while the leader of the center-right Democratic Party, Dario Franceschini, described it as “odious” and compared it to the laws of former fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.    SOURCE>>>

British airline BMI has apologised after in-flight maps on its London-Tel Aviv service did not identify Israel.

The moving maps marked Islamic holy sites but showed only the city of Haifa in Israel, identified by its Arabic name, Khefa.

Israeli officials accused BMI of trying to “hide the existence of Israel”.

But BMI said it was a technical error – the maps had not been changed since the planes were taken over from a former airline which flew to the Middle East. (more…)

Berlin was bracing itself for violence this May 1 and scuffles have started already.

Youths and police clashed last night, leading to a number of arrests and the fear is that this could just be a prelude to a day of disturbances.

Dating back to 1987, rioting has traditionally rocked the German capital on the May 1 Labour Day holiday, with extensive damage to parts of the city.

More recently, residents have seen a relative drop in violence, partly due to different police tactics aimed at defusing tension.

But this year an explosive atmosphere is feared, against the backdrop of Germany’s worst recession since World War Two and soaring unemployment.   MORE>>>

Booksellers told The Daily Telegraph that while it is regarded in most countries as a ‘Nazi Bible’, in India it is considered a management guide in the mould of Spencer Johnson’s “Who Moved My Cheese”.

Sales of the book over the last six months topped 10,000 in New Delhi alone, according to leading stores, who said it appeared to be becoming more popular with every year.

Several said the surge in sales was due to demand from students who see it as a self-improvement and management strategy guide for aspiring business leaders, and who were happy to cite it as an inspiration.

“Students are increasingly coming in asking for it and we’re happy to sell it to them,” said Sohin Lakhani, owner of Mumbai-based Embassy books who reprints Mein Kampf every quarter and shrugs off any moral issues in publishing the book. (more…)